RADIOMay 03, 2022

Housing, debt & shortages: YOUR economic questions answered

Is now a smart time to buy a house? Is paying off all your debt — and losing out on tax advantages — the right move? Will food shortages REALLY hit the U.S. as hard as the rest of the world? And how prepared are Americans for a potential, coming recession? Financial expert Carol Roth, author of ‘The War On Small Business,’ gives her advice for all YOUR questions about economic instability…

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: I'm concerned that small business can't continue in a country where we are teaching our kids to be risk-averse.

CAROL: It's certainly very difficult, or you get the type of entrepreneurs, who are delusional. Who think it's easy. We all know who David Hogg is, I believe. And he was complaining on Twitter the other day, how difficult it was. He tried to set up an LLC. And so difficult. Right as the government makes it so hard.

GLENN: All right. Really, welcome to the party, David.

CAROL: I know. So in a sense, it's almost a good thing. It's almost like we should have a training program, for anybody who is leaning towards socialism. Is required to start a small business. Just so they can see how difficult it is.

GLENN: Yeah.

CAROL: But, certainly, an aversion to risk. You know, more consolidation of power, that takes away the opportunity to innovate. And all the barriers, that the government has put up, to make it more difficult, to not only start a small business. But to hire your first employee. And to allow a small business owner to succeed.

You know, it's not a good thing for economic freedom, which is one of the reasons why people come here from all over the world, to try to start that business. And live the American dream.

GLENN: So when the fed is raising the interest rates, to try to control inflation, the reason why this led to an economic boom in the '80s, is because at the same time, the government said, forget all this regulation. Just go out and start a business. Right?

Without that part of the Reagan plan, raising interest rates, while piling new regulation on. That's really a killer, isn't it?

CAROL: Yeah. If you think about the fed's options here, and what they're trying to do, in terms of slowing down the economy. Giving the backdrop we have, of this messed up labor market, and supply chain. I mean, the only way you're really getting a slower economy, in my opinion, is if small businesses and to some extent, big businesses. You know, just stop hiring altogether. And I think the small businesses, since they've had a hard time hiring, can't survive. Or other things that may get very difficult for a small business to survive.

So the well-capitalized big businesses are going to be able to withstand this rollercoaster, which benefited them on the front end. And they will coast through. You know, come out the other end, okay. And the small businesses that have been beaten up, have been closed. Didn't get the relief funds. And haven't been able to take advantage of that free debt. Because they're smaller in scale. Are really the ones that are going to suffer from all of this. Once again, Glenn. Once again.

GLENN: Yeah. So if I read this one more time, I keep reading, that the economy is -- people are spending money, like there's no tomorrow.

Because the average American just has so much money in their bank account.

I -- I know that's not true. Common sense will tell you, that's not true.

Can you please put this to bed?

CAROL: So the average, and we've talked about before, average is not necessarily the median. It's often dragged up by the wealthy, at the top end.

But the average American is in better shape, going into this potential recession or stagflation. Or whatever it is, that we're about to face, and kind of in the middle of.

Than they have been in other recessions. The personal saving rates, is around, I think 6.2. 6.3 percent. As of the end of March, which was the last number that came out.

Now, that is worse than where we were, in 2019 and 2020, going in, you know, to the pandemic decisions.

But it's not through horrible, on a historic level.

We had people pay down a lot of their credit card debt. You know, with the relief funds. And what not, that they were staying home in the pandemic. Now, that started to creep back up again.

So today, they are in better shape. But the trajectory, particularly with the inflation as we know, is eating away at that.

So I would imagine that the personal saving rate will continue to decline. We will continue to see balances increase on their credit cards, and at some points, the consumer won't have that strength, in their balance sheet, and probably will also be making decisions to just punt certain expenditures, because their poor expenditures of living every single day, have gone through the roof.

GLENN: So we have some questions come in from the audience, and I want to go over a couple of them. Steve and Mary wrote in. You find write in, by the way, GlennBeck.com/question.

I keep hearing about food shortages. Some say that famine is come. My wife and I keep arguing, back and forth. She says, this is really the rest of the world. And not us.

Yes. Food will be more expensive because of inflation, but we won't have shortages. Which one of us is right?

GLENN: Probably splitting that down the middle. Certainly there is again or some crisis across the globe. We've heard that clip that you played from the fantastic Samantha Power, who doesn't seem to care. That potentially 40 to 65 percent of the world could be food and secure, or face starvation. Because we don't have enough fertilizer.

Certainly, we are in a better position, in the United States. But it depends on things going the right way.

I mean, we've seen that we've had a bout of avian flu, that we had to contend with. You know, it depends on crop yields. It depends on our government, not just doing stupid things, and we're seeing them pulling -- you know, feed out of -- you know, of the farm, in order to put it into gasoline, so that they don't have to drill for more oil.

I mean, they don't make the best decisions.

So I wouldn't say, that there isn't a possibility, that we're going to have issues here. Because I think there is that possibility. It just probably isn't as stark, as it is, in the rest of the world.

That being said, nobody has ever been upset for being too prepared. So be prepared for that. Worst-case scenario.

GLENN: Ron in New York wrote.

I think my job is secure.

But so did my grandfather. Or my great grandfather during the Great Depression. How do we know what's coming?

What's the difference? And how do we prepare?

Is it smart for me to buy a house at this point?

CAROL: So, again, this is not financial advice. Just some food for thought for you. It really depends on your personal, financial situation.

You know, if you were somebody who is still sort of living paycheck to paycheck, or building up your reserves. We don't know, what is coming down the pike.

You know, there are a lot of issues. The big thing right now, geopolitically is, you know, are these stupid statements from the Biden administration going to pull us into some sort of a nuclear war. At that point, you know, all bets are off.

If we're just looking at sort of the inflation picture, and the recession, I think the one benefit that we do have is that we have so few people in the labor market. Now, granted, it may get many people off the sidelines, if they see their 401(k)s shrinking, and have to deal with more inflation. But if you have a job, that you're secure in. You are probably in a better position, but it's always good, to kind of think through, what are your second and third options. What could you do, if that worst-case scenario comes about?

And, again, look at the sort of risk/reward, on the home front situation. We're underbuilt, as a nation, in terms of homes. And that is long-term probably going to support housing prices. But it doesn't mean that there won't be some variability in the meantime, especially with the increase, in mortgage rates.

So I would just spend a lot of time, doing the little pros and cons and putting that plan together. For your plan B and plan C. And wish you a ton of success.

GLENN: I remember my parents, again, the small business.

In the '70s. It was a nightmare. Because it was a lot like this. What are you -- what do you think is coming?

Is it like the 1970s? And it just stays like this? I mean, nobody knows, you know what I mean?

Americans have no benchmark.

CAROL: Certainty?

GLENN: Yeah. Yeah. But no benchmark to go back and go, it will be like this. We've never seen this.

CAROL: No. There are just a number of factors, that are all coming together. And as I said, I think that geopolitical wild card is the -- is the biggest wild card right now. Assuming that we can get that peace under control. Because as I said, if that goes off the rails, all bets are off here. I think the likelihood is that we see a recession, but because of the way, the recession has come out. And some of the opener weird things that are happening in the economy. I think at least, in the United States.

It's probably a shallower recession. Than we have seen, you know, in previous periods.

Not to say, that that won't cause real pain for people. It will. There will be people, probably who lose their jobs. Small businesses will end up closing.

But I don't think -- I think that it will be shorter in duration, you know, than it otherwise would have been if we didn't have some of these other structural issues going on at the same time.

Fingers crossed. But, you know, there are a number of factors here, the fed between raising rates, and shrinking their balance sheets. The geopolitical issues. And some of the issues that we're contending with. That's just sort of a best guess right now. But we have to stay on top of this realtime. Because things could change quickly.

Shocking train video: Passengers wait while woman bleeds out

Surveillance footage of the murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska in Charlotte, NC, reveals that the other passengers on the train took a long time to help her. Glenn, Stu, and Jason debate whether they were right or wrong to do so.

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: You know, I'm -- I'm torn on how I feel about the people on the train.

Because my first instinct is, they did nothing! They did nothing! Then my -- well, sit down and, you know -- you know, you're going to be judged. So be careful on judging others.

What would I have done? What would I want my wife to do in that situation?

STU: Yeah. Are those two different questions, by the way.

GLENN: Yeah, they are.

STU: I think they go far apart from each other. What would I want myself to do. I mean, it's tough to put yourself in a situation. It's very easy to watch a video on the internet and talk about your heroism. Everybody can do that very easily on Twitter. And everybody is.

You know, when you're in a vehicle that doesn't have an exit with a guy who just murdered somebody in front of you, and has a dripping blood off of a knife that's standing 10 feet away from you, 15 feet away from you.

There's probably a different standard there, that we should all kind of consider. And maybe give a little grace to what I saw at least was a woman, sitting across the -- the -- the aisle.

I think there is a difference there. But when you talk about that question. Those two questions are definitive.

You know, I know what I would want myself to do. I would hope I would act in a way that didn't completely embarrass myself afterward.

But I also think, when I'm thinking of my wife. My advice to my wife would not be to jump into the middle of that situation at all costs. She might do that anyway. She actually is a heck of a lot stronger than I am.

But she might do it anyway.

GLENN: How pathetic, but how true.

STU: Yes. But that would not be my advice to her.

GLENN: Uh-huh.

STU: Now, maybe once the guy has certainly -- is out of the area. And you don't think the moment you step into that situation. He will turn around and kill you too. Then, of course, obviously. Anything you can do to step in.

Not that there was much anyone on the train could do.

I mean, I don't think there was an outcome change, no matter what anyone on that train did.

Unfortunately.

But would I want her to step in?

Of course. If she felt she was safe, yes.

Think about, you said, your wife. Think about your daughter. Your daughter is on that train, just watching someone else getting murdered like that. Would you advise your daughter to jump into a situation like that?

That girl sitting across the aisle was somebody's daughter. I don't know, man.

JASON: I would. You know, as a dad, would I advise.

Hmm. No.

As a human being, would I hope that my daughter or my wife or that I would get up and at least comfort that woman while she's dying on the floor of a train?

Yeah.

I would hope that my daughter, my son, that I would -- and, you know, I have more confidence in my son or daughter or my wife doing something courageous more than I would.

But, you know, I think I have a more realistic picture of myself than anybody else.

And I'm not sure that -- I'm not sure what I would do in that situation. I know what I would hope I would do. But I also know what I fear I would do. But I would have hoped that I would have gotten up and at least tried to help her. You know, help her up off the floor. At least be there with her, as she's seeing her life, you know, spill out in under a minute.

And that's it other thing we have to keep in mind. This all happened so rapidly.

A minute is -- will seem like a very long period of time in that situation. But it's a very short period of time in real life.

STU: Yeah. You watch the video, Glenn. You know, I don't need the video to -- to change my -- my position on this.

But at his seem like there was a -- someone who did get there, eventually, to help, right? I saw someone seemingly trying to put pressure on her neck.

GLENN: Yeah. And tried to give her CPR.

STU: You know, no hope at that point. How long of a time period would you say that was?

Do you know off the top of your head?

GLENN: I don't know. I don't know. I know that we watched the video that I saw. I haven't seen past 30 seconds after she --

STU: Yeah.

GLENN: -- is down. And, you know, for 30 seconds nothing is happening. You know, that is -- that is not a very long period of time.

STU: Right.

GLENN: In reality.

STU: And especially, I saw the pace he was walking. He certainly can't be -- you know, he may have left the actual train car by 30 seconds to a minute. But he wasn't that far away. Like he was still in visual.

He could still turn around and look and see what's going on at that point. So certainly still a threat is my point. He has not, like, left the area. This is not that type of situation.

You know, I -- look, as you point out, I think if I could be super duper sexist for a moment here, sort of my dividing line might just be men and women.

You know, I don't know if it's that a -- you're not supposed to say that, I suppose these days. But, like, there is a difference there. If I'm a man, you know, I would be -- I would want my son to jump in on that, I suppose. I don't know if he could do anything about it. But you would expect at least a grown man to be able to go in there and do something about it. A woman, you know, I don't know.

Maybe I'm -- I hope --

GLENN: Here's the thing I -- here's the thing that I -- that causes me to say, no. You should have jumped in.

And that is, you know, you've already killed one person on the train. So you've proven that you're a killer. And anybody who would have screamed and got up and was with her, she's dying. She's dying. Get him. Get him.

Then the whole train is responsible for stopping that guy. You know. And if you don't stop him, after he's killed one person, if you're not all as members of that train, if you're not stopping him, you know, the person at the side of that girl would be the least likely to be killed. It would be the ones that are standing you up and trying to stop him from getting back to your daughter or your wife or you.

JASON: There was a -- speaking of men and women and their roles in this. There was a video circling social media yesterday. In Sweden. There was a group of officials up on a stage. And one of the main. I think it was health official woman collapses on stage. Completely passes out.

All the men kind of look away. Or I don't know if they're looking away. Or pretending that they didn't know what was going on. There was another woman standing directly behind the woman passed out.

Immediately springs into action. Jumps on top. Grabs her pant leg. Grabs her shoulder. Spins her over and starts providing care.

What did she have that the other guys did not? Or women?

She was a sheepdog. There is a -- this is my issue. And I completely agree with Stu. I completely agree with you. There's some people that do not respond this way. My issue is the proportion of sheepdogs versus people that don't really know how to act. That is diminishing in western society. And American society.

We see it all the time in these critical actions. I mean, circumstances.

There are men and women, and it's actually a meme. That fantasize about hoards of people coming to attack their home and family. And they sit there and say, I've got it. You guys go. I'm staying behind, while I smoke my cigarette and wait for the hoards to come, because I will sacrifice myself. There are men and women that fantasize of block my highway. Go ahead. Block my highway. I'm going to do something about it. They fantasize about someone holding up -- not a liquor store. A convenience store or something. Because they will step in and do something. My issue now is that proportion of sheepdogs in society is disappearing. Just on statistical fact, there should be one within that train car, and there were none.

STU: Yeah. I mean --

JASON: They did not respond.

STU: We see what happens when they do, with Daniel Penny. Our society tries to vilify them and crush their existence. Now, there weren't that many people on that train. Right?

At least on that car. At least it's limited. I only saw three or four people there, there may have been more. I agree with you, though. Like, you see what happens when we actually do have a really recent example of someone doing exactly what Jason wants and what I would want a guy to do. Especially a marine to step up and stop this from happening. And the man was dragged by our legal system to a position where he nearly had to spend the rest of his life in prison.

I mean, I -- it's insanity. Thankfully, they came to their senses on that one.

GLENN: Well, the difference between that one and this one though is that the guy was threatening. This one, he killed somebody.

STU: Yeah. Right. Well, but -- I think -- but it's the opposite way. The debate with Penny, was should he have recognize that had this person might have just been crazy and not done anything?

Maybe. He hadn't actually acted yet. He was just saying things.

GLENN: Yeah. Well --

STU: He didn't wind up stabbing someone. This is a situation where these people have already seen what this man will do to you, even when you don't do anything to try to stop him. So if this woman, who is, again, looks to be an average American woman.

Across the aisle. Steps in and tries to do something. This guy could easily turn around and just make another pile of dead bodies next to the one that already exists.

And, you know, whether that is an optimal solution for our society, I don't know that that's helpful.

In that situation.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

Max Lucado on Overcoming Grief in Dark Times | The Glenn Beck Podcast | Ep 266

Disclaimer: This episode was filmed prior to the assassination of Charlie Kirk. But Glenn believes Max's message is needed now more than ever.
The political world is divided, constantly at war with itself. In many ways, our own lives are not much different. Why do we constantly focus on the negative? Why are we in pain? Where is God amid our anxiety and fear? Why can’t we ever seem to change? Pastor Max Lucado has found the solution: Stop thinking like that! It may seem easier said than done, but Max joins Glenn Beck to unpack the three tools he describes in his new book, “Tame Your Thoughts,” that make it easy for us to reset the way we think back to God’s factory settings. In this much-needed conversation, Max and Glenn tackle everything from feeling doubt as a parent to facing unfair hardships to ... UFOs?! Plus, Max shares what he recently got tattooed on his arm.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

Are Demonic Forces to Blame for Charlie Kirk, Minnesota & Charlotte Killings?

This week has seen some of the most heinous actions in recent memory. Glenn has been discussing the growth of evil in our society, and with the assassination of civil rights leader Charlie Kirk, the recent transgender shooter who took the lives of two children at a Catholic school, and the murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska, how can we make sense of all this evil? On today's Friday Exclusive, Glenn speaks with BlazeTV host of "Strange Encounters" Rick Burgess to discuss the demon-possessed transgender shooter and the horrific assassination of Charlie Kirk. Rick breaks down the reality of demon possession and how individuals wind up possessed. Rick and Glenn also discuss the dangers of the grotesque things we see online and in movies, TV shows, and video games on a daily basis. Rick warns that when we allow our minds to be altered by substances like drugs or alcohol, it opens a door for the enemy to take control. A supernatural war is waging in our society, and it’s a Christian’s job to fight this war. Glenn and Rick remind Christians of what their first citizenship is.